microsoft
Add Gentoo distribution.
Summary of the Pull Request
- Add a Gentoo entry to
ModernDistributions - URL points to the GitHub Release asset
https://github.com/HUSTLUG/Gentoo-wsl/releases/download/20250525/gentoo_20250525.wsl
PR Checklist
- [ ] Closes: N/A (new distribution, no open issue)
- [ ] Communication: I've discussed this with core contributors already. If work hasn't been agreed, this work might be rejected
- [x] Tests: Manual install / update passes (see Validation below)
- [x] Localization: No end-user strings added
- [ ] Dev docs: N/A
- [ ] Documentation updated: Will submit a docs PR if required
Detailed Description of the Pull Request / Additional comments
Gentoo is a rolling-release source-based distribution widely used by power users.
This image is built from stage3-amd64-openrc, pre-installs sudo and provides an interactive OOBE that creates the first user. Package size ≈ 436 MB;
Validation Steps Performed
- Local install test success
wsl --install --from-file gentoo_20250525.wsl # install success
- Override manifest test success
.\override-manifest.ps1 -TarPath gentoo_20250525.wsl
wsl --list --online # shows "gentoo"
wsl --install gentoo # installs successfully
- Pass the validation script locally
$ python validate-modern.py --tar gentoo_20250525.wsl
Found valid keys in "./etc/wsl-distribution.conf": ['oobe.command', 'oobe.defaultname', 'shortcut.enabled', 'shortcut.icon']
Found valid keys in "./etc/wsl.conf": []
Hi @jiaxing-liu , from looking at this package it seems like this comes from a 'Gentoo-WSL' repo, maintained by a university team, not an official Gentoo repository / distribution itself. Is this an official Gentoo release by a team from the Gentoo foundation?
Hi @jiaxing-liu , from looking at this package it seems like this comes from a 'Gentoo-WSL' repo, maintained by a university team, not an official Gentoo repository / distribution itself. Is this an official Gentoo release by a team from the Gentoo foundation?
@craigloewen-msft You're correct — this distribution is not an official release from the Gentoo Foundation. It is maintained by the Linux User Group at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China, a student-led open-source organization.
The package is built from the official Gentoo stage3-amd64-openrc tarball, with minimal customizations like sudo and a first-run OOBE script, as shown in build_gentoo_wsl.sh.
I’m not sure whether only official releases from the Gentoo Foundation can be included in the WSL distribution list. However, if non-official Gentoo WSL packages are considered, this could be a useful resource for users who want to quickly experience Gentoo OS on Windows. It might also serve as a transitional step before the Gentoo Foundation takes over the maintenance of the WSL Gentoo package.
I would appreciate hearing your thoughts on this.
@craigloewen-msft I’ve just noticed that Gentoo already has official WSL support available at [Gentoo in WSL]. Although their installation package ([gentoo.zip]) is not listed in the WSL distribution list, I believe our non-official release may no longer be suitable for inclusion.
If you have no further questions or suggestions, I will proceed to close this PR.
No further questions, great catch on seeing that article. Thank you!